how much water to replace and how often in a reef tank

[Rookie_Reefer]

How often and how much water do you replace from a reef tank? I was told about 20% but wasn't sure about how often,

Thanks for help

 

[StikHedRon]

between 5-10% weekly is good advice, some do bi-weekly, some do monthly, some don't do it at all. It is all based on your preferences and type of tank your running.

 

[jesterisdead]

Algea scrubbers help folks not do changes for weeks. I do a 20% every other week with a 225 mixed reef.

 

[TJ's Reef]

Agree, 10-20% once a month or more is a great starting point depending on bio-load and livestock choices. For Softy and Softy/LPS systems on the lesser side typically and more frequently for Mixed Reef or heavy SPS systems. Many factors go into fine tuning ones maintenance schedule.

Cheers, Todd

 

[Trex]

I tend to do 5 gallons on each of my tanks (( 75, 65 and 40 )), of course the 40 gets a higher percentage of water changes. For me, an old salt bucket (( 5 gallons )) is easy to move around and work with. So, when you are figuring out what amount to do, take into account an amount that is easy to work with, otherwise there is a chance that you won't want to do the water changes.

 

[vlangel]

I do 5g a week on a 36g but I feed heavy.

 

[WhoKnew]

I do 10% wkly.

 

[Reef Viking]

i have always been advised to do small water changes once a month. i do know someone who went a whole year without doing a water change and his tank was one of the healthiest i ever seen!

 

[EricTMah]

I do 10 gals, 5% weekly

 

[rtrenor]

On my 8 & 12 gallon I do 1 gallon weekly, on both of my 20 gallons I do 3 gallons weekly, on my 60 I do 10 gallons weekly.

 

[Reefing Madness]

5-10% weekly or 20-25% monthly
Or run a very large Protein Skimmer and your changes will be less
Or run an Algae Turf Scrubber and your changes will be almost none exsistant
Or Carbon Dose aka Vodka Dose and you control the Nitrates and your water changes will go to nothing also

 

[ohiojeffsreef]

as much as it takes to control algae growth in your system. a lot depends on how heavily it is stocked and how you feed. for example I keep nps corals which need fed. that extra feeding means I need to change more water than some others. I change 20 gallons once a week, and my system holds 150 gallons of water. that is a little over 13%. I used to do 15 and had to increase because I had more algae than I wanted.

 

[Tylermacdonald15]

It all depends on how you feed your tank. My 210 gallon gets fed 2-3 times a day, but I don't have a heavily stocked tank so the feedings are very little. I do a 25 gallon change a week. I could easily go a month but I like to stay on a steady schedule of once a week so if I don't have time to do it one week I don't need to worry about it

 

[tencwhiskey]

I do 5 gallons a week, just easier that way. 5 gallon bucket. I have a 72 gallon

 

[Eckolancer]

About 10 gallons every 6 months in a 108 gallon tank. Working on 0 water changes. But still need to figure out what is missing from my dosing.